#GETHYPED

How to make dull topics exciting: an exciting look into a dull topic

Not all industries are super-sexy, content-dripping, Instagram products. We can’t all sell SkinnyTeas, Waist Trainers, and freakshakes with enough calories to make you want to buy a SkinnyTea drinking, Waist Trainer wearing, body building personal trainers’ meal plan.

For instance, content marketing (the majority of what we do hear at Hyped) is the work of making boring industries sexy, but the industry of content marketing itself is…. Also not sexy.

Seems unfair, right?

We’d have to agree.

But nevertheless, all industries, whether you’re a plumber, or you sell farming gear, or you’re an accountant – you need content. This is almost a given.

This content might differ from industry to industry, but at the end of the day you’ll need some form of it.

Whether that be:

Social media posts

Blog posts

Copy for your website

Copy for your advertising

Billboards

Local newspaper adverts

Business cards

The list can honestly go on and on, but I think you get the idea.

The hard part isn’t necessarily deciding which content to invest in, it’s about making that content exciting – sexy, even!

So how do you do it?

Firstly – and this is key – decide whether you’re going to be able to do this alone, or whether you need to employ help. This can be from people like us at Hyped, or from one-liner copywriters, or an advertising agency – it all depends on what kind of content you’re looking for, and what your budget is.

If you don’t need help, and you’re going the DIY route, then it’s time to look at your business’s personality.

Your Voice

What is your business, and if it were a person who speaks, what would it sound like?

It doesn’t have to be just one, but if you can, pick 2 or 3 adjectives that suit your brand and start making sure they’re present in all of your content.

Your Message

Next up is your message. Obviously you have something to say. Whether you’re discussing prices, writing your FAQ’s, or letting people know about a new product – either way you have a message.

Obviously there’s one way to do it:

“This week we are releasing a brand new tool to help farmers clean their gumboots – the Scrape-tacular. Price is $14.99 and available online and in-store this Friday.”

This works if all you want to do is let a few people know that you have a new device available. But does this work to get people excited? After reading this do you honestly want to go buy it? Probably not.

And even though a dirty gumboot scraper is probably the definition of an ‘un-sexy’ product – that doesn’t mean effort shouldn’t be put into the content about it.

Why not try:

“Dressing up or dressing down? Your gumboots will soon be able to fit you for any occasion! We’ve designed a world class boot scraper to help you go from Farm to Charm in no time.

The Scrape-tacular is a breezy $14.99 and will be rushing out our doors and website this Friday!”

It’s by far not the world’s best copy, but it’ll do a damn sight better than the first version at getting people excited about your product.

Your Imagery

Yes, that’s right. We’re counting imagery as a fundamental part of content.

For many business’s, the stock images used for websites and brochures are a one size fits all approach, and they’ll use these across all channels.

But this simply isn’t a sexy way to show off your products. If you’re looking at social media, blogging, and magazine inserts, stock images simply aren’t going to cut the mustard.

Take Little Fern’s baby teethers.

A stock image like this is perfect for a website, as it gives a well-lit view of the item, without any confusing extras in the image:

However, this really isn’t going to do anything on social media, where people expect to see a bit more personality in your image.

What is your item for? Who will enjoy it? What are the vibes you’re trying to give out?

Here we’ve paired the same teether with a baby’s blanket, and a rough wooden slab – this is a natural product, we’re trying to give warm, homely, and natural vibes.

Hopefully this has been of some help to you, and let us know what makes your un-sexy business sexy! We’d love to hear it.